DIY Custom Closet Dressing Room + Video

Sometimes a DIY project can be so huge that it consumes much of your "me" time and every ounce of patience.  Even the best of DIY'er, no matter how much s/he enjoys the project, would want to get it done and move on to the next project.  I can see a bunch of you DIY'ers nodding your head in agreement.  I feel for you, and the Mr. can relate.  

Our DIY closet/ dressing room was one such monstrous build.  The Mr. worked on our closet tirelessly, after work and on weekends.  In between the miscellaneous projects I threw at him (my bad) and other commitments, (did I mention he was also the coach of our son's hockey team?), he managed to stay afloat.  Although it took longer than he expected, the build is now complete, AND the chandelier installed.  WOO-HOO!

To mark this special occasion, we've put together a video that documents the blood and sweat that went into the building of this closet.  It's funny how this closet required so much detailed planning, that the Mr. was amazed he had done it all while watching the video.  

How we turned a HIS and HER closet space to one beautiful custom closet / dressing room. For details on the cabinet doors installation, check out our video tutorial: https://youtu.be/TSiq34SMtJA. Our blog www.classyglamliving.com has more DIY, design and decor ideas. Go check it out!

(Please scroll to the bottom of this post for a source guide.)

After he came back from his much-deserved amazing guys' trip last month, I again had a bunch of "stuff" lined up for him. Putting up this chandelier was one of them.  It's the cherry on top; what the closet/ dressing room needed to feel complete.  The sparkles from the chandelier compliment the sparkly glass pulls on the doors, and bring out the gold tone in the drawer hardware.

If you've only started to follow our blog, allow me to backtrack a bit.  This closet came to be when we made a request to the builder of this new house to delete the wall that separates the "his and her" closets, so that we can create this dressing room.

The closet's design went through several iterations and changes, and we ultimately ended with our current design.  We were very into the boutique style closet for a long time, and even researched the DIY possibilities.  However, we leaned towards a closet of closed storage, so that I can hide my mess!  

So we blended these two sources of closet inspiration:

Image via Atlanta Homes

... any Sex and the City fan would recognize Carrie Bradshaw's dreamy dressing room from the movie:

Image via Marks & Frantz, set designer

... and we created our own version:

Now, this is a dressing room fit for a princess; one who demands that there's a spot for all her specific storage needs.  (Did I just describe myself?  ;-P )

While making the DIY start-to-finish video above, I witnessed once again the Mr.'s persistence to complete this project.  I never doubted his ability to build this closet, and like I mentioned in the previous update, the closet turned out to be even more beautiful and elegant than I had imagined.  I hope he knows that I am immensely proud of this monstrous undertaking.

Well, that's precisely one of the reasons why I started this blog, so that I would be reminded again and again of the Mr.'s dedication to making our house a beautiful home.  For this home, this custom closet/ dressing room is the first step to making this home a classy and glamorous one.

Understandably, building from scratch isn't for the faint of heart. But we've also done an easier dressing room in our previous home with IKEA PAX wardrobes. All you need are some mouldings. Check it out here! 

(Scroll down for source guide)

We hope we haven't kept you waiting for too long for this final reveal of our DIY custom closet/ dressing room!  Here are the previous updates of this DIY project:

Update #1

Update #2

Update #3

Update #4 - lots of detailed shots in this post

Source Guide

• The closet frames and drawers were constructed from maple wood for sturdiness.

• Paint color - Benjamin Moore's Sidewalk Gray @ 50% tint

• Hardware - Glass door pulls from House of Antique Hardware; vanity glass knobs from Lee Valley Tools; brass drawer pulls from Gingers Bath.

• Marble adhesive - Amazon (affiliated link)

• Acrylic mirrors - Plas-Tech Inc.

Update #3 - DIY Custom Dressing Room + Video Tutorial

Well, the Mr. was at it again this past week...  No, not another hiatus!  The positive feedback on Instagram of our previous update was the fuel he needed to keep going.  We thank you for that!  He turned on his turbo DIY engine and completed the remaining 6 doors and installed them.

This is the view as you come into our master suite.  This is the hallway that separates the closet/ dressing nook to the right, and the master ensuite to the left.  Our sleeping quarter is at the end where the chandelier is.  

If we hadn't made this change to the original floor plan to replace the his and her closets, then this hallway would look very enclosed.  Deleting that separation and widening the entrance of the closet gave the bedroom a much larger impression.

And these are the 6 doors that the Mr. worked on this past week.  I'm so glad I can now hide my mess behind them!!

Instead of posting just another regular update, the Mr. had another idea.  While he was researching on how to install cabinet doors, it was hard to find a video that demonstrated the process from start to finish.  He had to piece together different videos together to grasp the concept.  

To ease the research process of other DIYer's, we've put together a short easy guide to install cabinet doors.  It goes from start to finish; from drilling of the cup hinges, to installing the door on the cabinet frame, to adjusting the door to fit against each other.

Without further ado, here's our video tutorial!  So grab a coffee and take a look!  It's only 5 minutes!

This is our very first video tutorial, and we would be grateful to receive any constructive feedback and comments.  Please feel free to do so in the comment section below.

Next step is, you know it, to sand and paint the doors...  but only the door frames, as we're installing mirrors on them.  Then comes the finishing touches of installing crown moulding and lighting.  I threw in another last minute wifey request on the doors (oops I did it again?).  It'll just make the doors nicer, and I'm glad the Mr. agrees.  =)

Stay tuned for more updates!  I have a feeling the dressing room/ walk-in closet will be completed VERY soon!!  

In the meantime, you can connect with us on our Instagram account to get the latest updates around our house!

Here are the previous updates of our DIY custom walk-in closet/ dressing room:

Update #1

Update #2

DIY Custom Dressing Room - Progress Update #2

After some much needed R&R over the last month, the Mr. got straight back to some heavy duty catch-up on our DIY custom closet/ dressing room.  

Since my previous closet update, he had completed the pull-out racks:

... and the fronts of the bottom drawers last month (please excuse the mess in the closet...  that's why we need doors!!):

It didn't look very pretty then, but read on...

It's a lengthy DIY project, so understandably the Mr. took a brief hiatus from the closet.  He went back to work on it last week and installed the baseboards and quarter-rounds on the closet:

He also painted and installed the fronts of the bottom drawers.  It's getting better now...

This past weekend, he swore up and down that he would get the fronts of the vanity drawers and pull-out racks done.  He showed me the raw product:

The fronts for the pull-out racks:

He painted the fronts...

... and installed them:  

Words simply cannot express how much I appreciate his dedication and hard work.

Having done all that, the Mr. couldn't just leave that vanity counter unfinished.  He painstakingly applied the self-adhesive marble paper* onto the wooden counter.  Here's our "marble" vanity countertop:

With the vanity top completed, we now have a spot where our trinkets can reside.  

We each get a drawer of the vanity for our stuff.  I left off of my last dressing room update with another wify request.  Can you guess what I added to my wish list when the Mr. was about to install the counter?

It was this...  a folding station:

Since we're folding much of our clothing in the drawers, the folding station would really come in handy.

I really love how the knobs and pulls add sparkles to the closet fronts.  Here's a close-up of the glass handle with hexagon tips.  It looks and glistens like a diamond!

I'm so in love with the glass knobs; they add the perfect touch of elegance to the vanity.  

That mirror was stolen from our bathroom as temporary vignette background, as I'm still shopping for an art piece for the vanity.  

Here is how we left off with our previous closet update:

And this is where we are now, with the drawer fronts in place (again, please excuse our mess inside the closet ;-) 

It's getting closer to our source of inspiration - Carrie's closet in Sex & the City 2:

CARRIE'S CLOSET IN SEX AND THE CITY 2, IMAGE VIA MARKS & FRANTZ

This is the view from the entrance of the master suite.  When the closet doors are in place, this view would look much neater.

Stay tuned for our blog updates!  You never know, the Mr. may be on a mission to complete the closet doors.  My next update could be the big reveal!  (I hope so!)

*Affiliated link